News

KV AFS Racing Saavedra Finished 15th at 2014 Indy 500

KV/AFS RACING SEBASTIAN SAAVEDRA FINISHES 15TH AT THE 2014 INDIANAPOLIS 500By Kevin Diamond, KV/AFS RacingMay 25, 2014INDIANAPOLIS, IN - May 25, 2014 - KV AFS Racing's Sebastian Saavedra climbed 17 positions today to finish 15th at the 98th running of the Indianapolis 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, IN.Saavedra started 32nd in his No. 17 KV AFS Racing Chevrolet/Dallara/Firestone. He immediately moved up five spots on the first lap and by the time he made his second stop was running 21st. He began struggling with understeer and pace from the car and when the second yellow flag was shown, the crew made a rear and front wing change. With laps running out, drivers began taking more risks and the yellow flags were becoming more common. With 10 laps to go, the red flag was shown for the amount of debris on track from his teammate Townsend Bell's accident in turn two. Saavedra had sustained a broken front end plate from that prior restart, but with just five laps remaining courageously opted to stay out and was rewarded with 15th, his best finish in four Indy 500 attempts.

"Fifteenth place is very welcomed after a very long day out there," said Saavedra. "I am very proud of my KV AFS Racing boys because they never gave up. We didn't have the best car, but we kept fighting and even with a broken wing at the end, we still never gave up. We were able to pick up some great points today, which will help us towards the championship. We will come back stronger next year but from where we started in 32nd, to survive and finish 15th was a huge accomplishment."

Saavedra earned 38 points today, which puts him 17th in the Verizon IndyCar Series standings with 101points, 22 points away from 10th.

The 23-year-old, from Bogota, Colombia, has been among the youngest drivers in nearly every series he has competed in. He joined Firestone Indy Lights just before his 19th birthday and that year was awarded Rookie of the Year honors with AFS Racing/Andretti Autosport. He moved to Bryan Herta Autosport for 2010, where he made his Indianapolis 500 debut in becoming the third Colombian driver to do so. Saavedra then stepped up to the IndyCar Series in 2011 with Conquest Racing before returning to Indy Lights in 2012. Last year, he spent the entire season back in IndyCar with Dragon Racing.

Next up for the Verizon IndyCar Series is the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit on the streets of Belle Isle Park. The double-header weekend will be broadcast live on ABC at 3:30 p.m. (ET) on May 31st and June 1st. IMS Radio Network coverage is augmented by real-time Timing & Scoring on www.indycar.com and the INDYCAR 14 app. The IMS Radio Network broadcast also can be heard on network affiliates, XM 209 and Sirius 213.